“The Superstar
Activator,” helps
speakers, coaches,
authors, and
entrepreneurs build
sustainable, scalable,
purpose-driven
speaking, event, and
education-based
enterprises that give
them a fabulous,
fulfilling life WHILE
contributing to others
and making the world
a better place.

To learn more, visit
SuperstarActivator.com.

GET BUILDING!

If you’re ready to
grow the back end
of your business,
you’ll find even
more insights from
Michelle Villalobos at
speakermagazine.com/
back-end-business.

ORDER UP!

Ready? It’s time to look at how you can build your
back-of-the-house business. Below are eight key ways
to find opportunities, ideas, and strategies to improve
your income model.

1. Identify your special sauce! It’s essential
that you identify your strengths, and what you enjoy
in order to create the most possible value through
leverage.

2. Look at what your clients want, need,
and (especially!) what they are asking for on
an ongoing basis, not a one-time need, but rather
the needs that never end. That’s where the long-term
play is. Think about razors—they sell you the handle
once, and the blades forever. As Mark LeBlanc would
say, “Why sell a one-year agreement, when you can
sell a two-year agreement or a five-year agreement?”
Where you currently have a one-year renewal cycle,
consider introducing a two-year or even longer
commitment.

3. Look for role models who align with what
you want. Are they doing what you want to do? Are
they living like you want to live? Are they making the
kind of money you want to make? Would you really
want to step into their lives? Be honest. If the answer
to all the above is YES, then examine their model(s)
for inspiration.

4. Check out the list of a la carte revenue streams at left. Which of them might be
enjoyable for you? Easy for you? Which would you
definitely want to avoid?

5. What are you already doing that you
could …

¢ Add people to.

¢ Generate additional revenue streams from.

¢ Film or record, transcribe, and publish.

6. Always open the door to back-end
corporate business early on by asking clients:
“So what are you going to do to reinforce this
message?” And always include the back-end o;er
in your initial proposal, either verbally or written.

7. Talk to your favorite clients. There’s
almost always someone willing to invest more in a
premium o;ering. This philosophy enabled Grey
Goose to pioneer the super-premium vodka category, and it can enable you to pioneer new revenue
streams, too. Start with people who already love
you and happily pay you, and ask them what
ongoing need you might be able to fulfill.

8. Use the Problem-Solution-Problem-Solution approach. Identify your target
client’s problem, then make your initial o;ering
the solution to that problem. But don’t stop
there. Next, identify the new problem and make
sure you have a new solution. Then do it again,
and again. Four times is pretty good for a nice
client ascension model.

HAVING RESERVATIONS?

If where you want to go with your business model
is substantially di;erent from where you are today,
you may need to think processionally, meaning, in
phases.

Work backward from where you want to go.
For example, if right now your back end is one-on-one coaching, but your dream is to have a
virtual group that you can lead from any where in
the world, then that’s Phase 3. Phase 2 might be
to first migrate to an online platform with your
existing coaching clients, and then invite them
to a special new group program online.

Remember there’s a whole operational side to
this business model that we’re not getting into
here, but that is still important. For starters, you
must build the infrastructure to support it. So,
grow at a measured pace and make sure to address
the nuts and bolts, systems, and processes, and
avoid any and all analog systems; they don’t scale
well. These days, there’s an app for everything
from KPI tracking and coaching accountability,
to birthday card writing and intake forms, and
everything in between. Take advantage. ■